


Fields of Flowers Soft Beneath My Heel

by A_Whale_Named_George



Category: Newsies - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Hadestown Fusion, And I am, Boys In Love, Dancer Racetrack Higgins, Demeter Is a Good Mother, Demeter Loves Her Daughter, F/M, Great Depression, Hermes Is A Wine Aunt, Hot Shot Is Wing Man, It May Seem Like Im Bashing Hades & Persephone, M/M, Might Be My Favorite, Poverty, Race as Euridice, Racetrack Follows The Wind, She's awesome, Singer Spot Conlon, Spot as Orpheus, Spot's Family Owned a Plantation Before The Weather Went Mad, The exact opposite of slow burn, There Should Be More Fics About Hot Shot, They Get A Dog Named Coffee, This Isn't About Hot Shot, eventually, fast burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-24
Updated: 2021-02-03
Packaged: 2021-03-11 04:21:24
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,145
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28279044
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/A_Whale_Named_George/pseuds/A_Whale_Named_George
Summary: “La lala la lala laaa hmmm” Race hummed a tune stuck in his head as he skipped and danced through the outskirts of Brooklyn. He never got it the right way it played in his head. Race feels like the air is now fresh, unlike the last town he was in. It was odd, how could air grow stale? Race didn’t know. He didn’t think he ever would.Race had been following the wind since he was a boy and maybe it was time to stop. Maybe Brooklyn could be home. It would be a struggle to stay especially with the seasons out of wack and Hadestown seeming more appealing by the day, but with the help of a new friend Spot he could quit.
Relationships: Albert DaSilva & Racetrack Higgins, Hades/Persephone (Hadestown), Racetrack Higgins & Hermes, Spot Conlon & Demeter, Spot Conlon & Hot Shot, Spot Conlon/Racetrack Higgins
Kudos: 4





	1. Road To Hell/Any Way The Wind Blows/Come Home With Me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please don't judge the fic by this chapter I wrote it years ago and tried to edit it as much as I could without completely rewriting it. The next few chapters are much better and thank you wonderful beta BloodWolf29 I am forever grateful to her and please don't judge by what the fic is based on. I hope you enjoy the coming chapters that are much better than this ♡⁀⊙﹏☉⁀

“La lala la lala laaa hmmm” Race hummed a tune stuck in his head as he skipped and danced through the outskirts of Brooklyn. He never got it the right way it played in his head. Race feels like the air is now fresh, unlike the last town he was in. It was odd, how could air grow stale? Race didn’t know. He didn’t think he ever would.

Race shivers, the air may be fresh but it is still the coldest time of year. He only wore a thin light pink sweater and black breaches. Not the warmest outfit. Actually quite a cold outfit in winter and a sweaty one in summer, but it was all he had. 

Music was playing from inside a bar. Race looked up to the sign ‘Jacobi’s Place’. Wait a minute… was that Mr. Hermes singing? The god who had followed Race like a father for years? What was he doing here?

“There was one more soul on this road, boy come in from the cold!” 

‘...um excuse me? You’ve known me most of my life and I’m the boy to you?’ Race was a little offended by that. Hermes was still a god though, he’d never be able to say anything like that aloud. He still comes into the party though it _was_ cold. 

The party was filled with people dancing and drinking like a doctor was coming to saw their legs off. Hermes was paying. Hermes was rarely generous like this and Race assumed _maybe not_ but it was probably because he wanted to get on the patron goddess of Brooklyn’s good side: Demeter. 

She had blessed the city even before the weather went to shit. Maybe it was because Brooklyn was the closest town to the train to Hadestown. Maybe it was because one of the biggest plantations in the country used to call this place home. Or maybe Demeter just enjoyed the off chance to be a part of a place so out of her area of expertise. 

Inside the bar, Race danced and danced. He was graceful while he danced twirling on his tippy toes. Race didn’t know anybody so being there wasn’t as fun as it could be, he didn’t enjoy loneliness, almost always feeling guilty when leaving. It was just his way of things and loneliness was something he had learned to live with.

______________

Spot was having a _wonderful_ time hearing Hotshot go on and on about some guy she would forget about the next morning. He had spent the majority of the night playing poker and dominating. They played for pennies so not exactly worth much… It was still a good time.

The group of strangers(excluding Hotshot) was added to by one more unfamiliar face. He had curly blonde hair and was grinning like the Cheshire cat the whole way through. It was obvious his hand must have been perfect or that he just really liked poker. Spot like most of the others didn’t want to take their chances against someone that happy with such a bad poker face so everyone folded.

But… oh that fucker didn’t even have that good of cards. If he hadn’t folded, Spot woulda won. Spot’s fist slammed into the table frustratingly as people went to go dancing and/or drinking. The pretty liar going straight to the damn god who patronized this. The boy looked strong and could probably lift some heavy buckets worth of fruit. 

Hotshot came up behind him “Why you lookin’ at blondie over there? You like him or something?” 

  
  


“No, I’m thinking if he’d be good help at the orchard since you refuse to help out this summer. Do you think he has strong enough arms? Does he look like he knows how to pickle vegetables?”

“Spot this is a party, not a job interview, enjoy it!”

Spot went with her for drinks and then dancing. They ran and sang and Spot barely remembered what he did. It was just life and brief happiness in this bleak world they lived in.

___________________________

“Mr. Hermes, how do you talk to someone when you don’t know what kind of person they’d be friends with?”

“Kid, you’re supposed to be yourself and hope for the best, usually that doesn’t work but it's what I’m s’posed to tell ya, who you wanna talk to anyway?”

“That one guy over there,” he pointed “The super muscular one he’s really cute but I don’t know what to say to him”

“Ask him on a date”

“Mr. Hermes,” he pinched his nose in agitation “I know you’re a god and you don’t have these kinds of risks but if I ask someone out and they say ‘no thank you’ I will be mortified and die on the spot” 

“Just ask him, kid, you’ve asked people on dates before and you’ll be fine this time,” And with that Hermes left, his advice unhelpful as always. 

Race didn’t let it bother him. He went to walk up to the cute guy and redirected to the drinks. He went to ask the cute guy out and then left and talked to some random person. _Then_ the cute guy went up and was talking to Hermes and the music stopped. Why was he doing that?

Oh my, does he play? Of course, he plays, he has a guitar strapped to his back! The cute guy must be so _cool._

______________________________________

What was Spot doing? He was cheered on by Hotshot to play something but now he was regretting it. Spot took a breath and thought ‘everyone here is drunk or doesn’t care they’ll all just be watching you. 

_“Weather ain’t the way it was before, ain’t no spring or fall at all anymore. It’s either blazin’ hot or freezing cold any way the wind blows…”_

He’s sung this song before to Hotshot, it was based on a small group of Hermes followers he met when he was young who said they traveled wherever the wind took them. It was odd to him to follow something so trivial, and yet the concept was inspirational.

_“And there ain’t a thing that you can do when the weather takes a turn on you ‘cept for hurry up and hit the road any way the wind blows…_ ” 

he strummed a few chords. When he wrote this song he was afraid that some real Hermes follower would hear it and know what it was about and _now_ the actual _Hermes_ has heard it. 

_“Wind comes up! Ohhh do you hear that sound? Wind comes up! Move to another town… I ain’t sticking around when the dark clouds roll any way the wind- blows…”_

He continued the song stress-free from that point on enjoying it. It was a nice song. It brought him joy. And brought him joy to get lost in what he was playing showing the feeling of someone who only had what was on his back controlled by the whims of air. 

He jumped down from the stage and the band started up to see the curly-haired poker player fiddling with his pink sweater. He had almost come up to him twice before but he had veered off to get a drink or talk to someone. 

“Hey so um, I’m Race I liked your song… Gods, I don’t know what I’m doing. Do you wanna go on a date or something?”

Huh, a guy wants to go on a date with you that hasn’t happened in a while. It could be fun.

“Love to, the names Spot when do you want to meet?” This guy was cute in a way it might be fun.

“Gods, I thought that was gonna be so much worse. Tomorrow around noon?”

“Noon works for me. I’ll meet you at the deli section of this place ok?”

Race smiled sweetly all nerves gone “Ok, I’m going home for the night so uh goodnight.” 

  
  


_______________

  
Spot wasn't worried about the date. Most people only went on dates for the fun of it. Like acting as if a stranger is your friend. Spot didn't usually go on dates.

Race wasn't worried about the date. He'd leave in a week anyway. He once had a traveling partner who had hated it when Race went on mindless dates.

Race freaked out about asking someone to go on a date much more than going on one. The plan was to meet Spot at the bar and they might do something. Like dancing! Race would love to teach someone to dance. Spot was already in front of the bar smoking when his date got there.

"You got a match?" Race asked pulling out his own pack of cigarettes

"You smoke? You didn't seem the type"

"Yeah, you know Mr. Hermes? He's the one that got me into it" 

"My dad left me all his smokes before he left"

"Well, you got a tragic backstory! Why’d he leave?" Race child, you don’t ask these kinds of things on a first date

Spot didn't seem to mind. I mean he did just mention it offhandedly "I dunno, he said he needed to 'find himself'"

"Back to the topic of smokes! I heard tobacco makes your lungs black"

Spot smiled. He should get out of his comfort zone more often. By now they had started walking and made it fully into the city

"Yeah, I have this friend of mine," more like a parent "She wants me to quit but its better to die choking on your lungs than starving,"

"Your right! So I was walking through Virginia right? And some guy just dropped dead while I was talking to him, he hadn't eaten in weeks, and he looked like a prune it was disgusting"

They talked for hours somehow wandered onto the topic of Race's travels and how Spot's song he sang was I quote 'like if I could sing and write that would be my inner turmoil'

"Following the wind is like... You start doing it cause you think you just need to leave but then you keep leaving until you’ve left so many times it’s wrong not to. I’ve been here before but only for a couple of days. I’m gonna try to stay the whole summer this year”

"Do you wanna work at my orchard this summer? My friend Hot Shot usually helps me but she won't this year"

This could be it! He just stays for the job and he’d be great! Maybe he could even make it to winter!

"I pay by giving you part of the food and freeboard in the guest room. Fair warning my best friend Hotshot comes over a LOT"

That just added to the pot "I'd love to! Any reason to keep me here is a good one. Good night!"

Spot smiled making his way back home. Racetrack was really, really good at whatever this dating thing was. Would they go on more dates? Could they become a thing? Spot would like that.


	2. Epic I part I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hermes comes to see Race so now Spot has to show Race the god that favors HIM. They go to Demeter's field and have a splendid time there and discover something when Spot sings a certain song...

Race had become fond of early morning before dawn. In the beginning, he thought Spot had just wanted to see him suffer(He did) but now he still hates it but it’s worth it to be the only ones awake. There was an awarding feeling to it that would make Racetrack feel as if he was doing better than others. He knew that wasn’t the case but he could imagine.

For weeks Spot and Race had woken up to work cold hours planting and tending and hoping that when summer came the plants wouldn’t immediately die during the first heatwaves. Race had never liked summer.

Sure he liked the friendlier people and he liked getting food but he hated and he meant _hated_ the bringer of summer. Race had only ever seen her once but her complete disregard of people starving had ticked him off. Race had already disliked most gods because he couldn’t wrap his head around having that much power and just sitting on a mountain. Or creating people or society. He couldn’t fathom something that old and then respect them. I mean they’re incredibly old and powerful but at the same time, they were just people. People who got jealous, and sad, and were selfish cause dammit it feels so good to be selfish.

Race was selfish. All the times he left friends he was being selfish, every time he walked into a new place just for some fresh-er air that fundamentally was the same as the last was selfish. But Race also thought that it was good to be selfish because if you weren’t what would you do for yourself? Being selfless was all well and good and Race 100% needed to practice it more but there was a time in his life where all he thought he was, was what he could do for others. 

During Race and Spot’s break for lunch, the wind picked up and out of the dust Mr. Hermes appeared.

“What are you doing here?” Spot was genuinely curious. A god in _his_ orchard, did he want something? Spot didn’t have much to give but everyone knew that when a god wants something you give it to them and if you don’t have it you better hope they’re in a good mood.

“Just wanted to thank you.” 

“For what?” Spot said as respectfully as he could not wanting to sound ungrateful. He _was_ ungrateful for a god just showing up saying thanks for no reason but he couldn’t just say that. 

“Well, just between you and me, Racetrack is like a son to me so thank you for taking care of him. Makes me worry less.” Then he turned and left in a gust of wind.

“Mr. Hermes! Spot I am so sorry for that he gets like this if I don’t leave somewhere after a month it just happens”

“No it's fine, just, I didn’t know you had a god looking after you! Is that why you were talking to him at that party?”

“Yeah, he can be like a father for me. He only shows up when I either do something really good or really bad though.”

“Well, now I’ve gotta show you the god who likes me! C’mon workdays over you’re not gonna show me up like this”

“Okay Spotty, whatever you says” Race follows Spot with a smile on his face.

They walk out of town for a couple of miles. Race had taken this road countless times and now he was a little scared that if Spot was out of his sight he might just make a break for the ‘ _Leaving Brooklyn’_ sign. Soon they came upon a field where every inch of it was covered in flowers and the winter chill seemed to evaporate as they walked into a greenhouse-like area. 

In what was probably the middle of the field (Race couldn’t be sure the flowers stretching far off the horizon) there was a farmhouse. Vines climbing up the sides with a beautiful and open wraparound porch surrounding it. On the windowsill there was a radio, something most people couldn’t afford, playing [music](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZ54mBZk-3g). The music was calming and fit the peaceful atmosphere well. Race loved music; it brought bubbles into his stomach and a light and airy happiness to him. 

Happiness that wasn’t like laughing at a funny joke or situation, happiness that was complete contentment. Content that lasted and didn’t evaporate as soon as he stopped thinking about it. It was sweet and Spot seemed to feel it too, his face gave a rare smile one that seemed calm and without worries. Nothing mattered at the moment they walked into the field. 

That moment ended when a tall woman unexpectedly stepped out of the farmhouse front door “Hello Spot, I see you’ve brought a friend who is he?” The woman radiated calm, motherly energy. She looked as if she came from one of the family sitcoms they used to make, “I am so happy you came over dear, Persephone should be coming home any day now and I was hoping you could help me get the house ready. You wouldn’t mind, yes?” 

“No, ma’am we’d love to help you. This here is Racetrack. He's working with me at the orchard for the coming summer. He’s also my boyfriend”

“Oh! I didn’t know you had someone! I am so excited, while you boys clean I’ll make pie. Racetrack, what is your favorite flavor?”

“I like peaches, ma’am”

Spot grabbed Racetrack’s hand and they walked into the giant house. Spot had always loved coming here. He had met Demeter when he was a boy and helped her carry her groceries to her home. She had taken a liking to him and always let her into this field. Never into the house without permission but he could spend any day in the field. 

Spot and Race cleaned the house slowly, starting top to bottom by scrubbing the walls and windows of grime then to the room organized and clean. Beds were made and rooms were cleared of clutter. They then dusted and then broomed and then mopped. This list may sound short but with the large house, it took longer than it sounds. They began at noon and ended at five o’clock. Five whole hours were spent cleaning every room individually. 

When they finished they saw Demeter had made a full meal for their hard work. Spot looked over at Race to see his mouth was watering. He probably expected the pie and that's it, the boys didn’t eat much often but whenever Spot came to help Demeter with housework she always would prepare a full course meal. There were green beans, and mashed potatoes, and rolls for sides and a main course of steak. Actual steak!

“So Racetrack, I haven’t seen you around how long have you been in Brooklyn?”

“Well, I got here ‘bout a month ago but I’ve passed through before,”

“Oh, do you travel a lot then? I do my fair share of traveling but I used to be in a new place daily. I’ve settled down since then,”

“Well I’ve been a follower of Hermes since I was about 8 just looking for where I’m meant to be, I’ve seen almost the whole country I even saw the Pacific once. I’ve always liked Brooklyn but I’ve never stayed for longer than a week.” 

“A follower of Hermes? My nephew always had a dream of having people follow his teachings. He always thought the place you start in will rarely be where you're ‘meant to be’. Is that a big thing in the group?”

“Well, I only knew one other person who follows the wind so I can’t speak for all of us, but how it works is you’re already traveling once Mr. Hermes gets to you and then he’ll tell you that where you are is rarely where you're meant to be and that as long as you follow the wind you have a chance of finding where you meant to be and I will protect you until then. Y’know like from bandits and dangerous paths. But I’ve been following the wind so long now it is quite difficult to stop. I see the wind changing and I gotta follow it. It's just a part of me by now.”

Spot had never known this. Racetrack had never liked to talk about his travels, maybe a goddess asking made Race feel like he had to answer. Race had looked uncomfortable while speaking and Demeter didn’t seem to notice.

“Well I hope you stay for a while, you are a pleasure to have around. Now you boys have eaten your dinner I gotta clean up so run home or spend some time in the field. I love you Spot treat my boy well Racetrack,”

“Goodnight Miss Demeter” Spot and Race chorused stepping outside

“Do you wanna head out into the field? I have some pretty great spots”

Racetrack smiled brightly and nodded “I’d love to Spotty, maybe I can try and make you’s a crown”

“You can try Racer but I doubt your flower crown abilities are better than mine”

“Wanna bet?”

“You can try but prepare to be amazed by the crown I’ll make you”

“Race ya!”

Spot ran to find the yellow begonias and pink carnations. Yellow and pink seemed like such Race colors they were sure to look nice with his golden curls. He chose begonias and carnations just because he thought they were pretty. He went to where Race was sitting, weaving Spot’s crown and Spot sat down next to him to weave Race’s. He tried to finish it as fast as he could with it still looking nice. 

“Done!” they both finished around the same time Race had made Spot a crown of red amaryllis. “You’re pretty good Racer but I’ll tell you your clasping is sloppier than mine. So you’ve got the better crown and I win!” 

Race looked so happy at that moment Spot just wanted to kiss his smile off. So he did, he pecked Race on the cheek only making him smile more. In the moonlight, the radio was still playing and then loud trumpets made Spot and Race jump, [ Tomorrow ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bgMbNem0QMY)by Frankie Carle and His Band had just come on the radio. 

“I love this song!” Race jumped up pulling Spot with him and he started to dance to the beat of the music. He danced wildly without a care in the world and Spot only tried to keep up with him. Spot twirled Race and they both started laughing “I’ll be seeing my baby-tomorrow! Tomorrow the day after today!” Spot sang along making them both laugh the song ended too soon and with the moon hanging in the sky they walked home. 

“I’ve had this song stuck in my head for weeks. It goes kinda Laa la la la laaa laa laaaa… no that wasn’t it so like I think the first la is long then short than like the first”

“So laa la laa I guess?” They were trying to piece together a song Racetrack had heard somewhere but Race sounded like cracking eggshells when he sang. He sang like a toad would with lots of croaking. It kinda hurt to watch. 

Once Race had explained the song to the best of his ability and epiphany hit Spot “Racer, I think that’s Hades and Persephone’s song”

“Really? Sing it! Sing it!”

“Well I can’t remember it that well but the main melody that your singing is laa la laa la laa laaa” then once Spot had finished up sprout a small sapling out of the snow

Race looked down and then up “Did you do that? Cause I didn’t. It Demeter messing with us?” he looked around like he would be able to see her 

“I think that was me…”

“What! Are you like I dunno a demigod? Is that it?”

“I mean I never knew my mother”

“And you knew your father? Did he ever talk about your mother?” 

“I don’t know! Maybe?! Just let's keep this between us. I don’t want any would-be farmer to make me sing to their crops okay?”

“Okay, what about Hot Shot should we tell her?”

“Maybe I’m not sure. No lets not the fewer people know the better”

“Okay, okay, I can do that. I can keep a secret”

“Let’s go home I’m exhausted”

“But you’ll finish the song, right?”

“What do you mean finish it?”

“I mean, you could-you could bring back spring with this at least a little”

Spot didn’t realize that. Could he? Could he, some nobody from Brooklyn, bring back spring? No. But he could bring a little. Maybe enough to bring in a profit… If he did that he could sell during winter or at least be guaranteed to live through winter every year. 

“I’ll finish it,” He said determinedly.

Hades and Persephone’s song brought the gods spring or fall it was _their_ song. If he wanted to make something sprout he'd have to make something completely from him

“I’m going to have to write my own but I can do it”

“Well if you finish it we could- we could do anything go anywhere we’d never have to worry about money… You have to finish it!”

“If you had any musical talent I’d ask you for help”

“Hey! What's that s’posed to mean?”

“Supposed to mean you couldn’t sing your way out of a paper bag”

“I dance well. I dance better than you ever could”

“Sure, but will you dancing bring back spring?”

“No! But I’ll get you!”

Spot and Race ran Race chasing Spot screaming about how ‘I’ll get you!!!’ until they had run all the way to the tiny 1 room shack they call home next to the orchards as they collapse into their bed with a loud thud.  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so much happier with this chapter than the first one! I feel like it was less all over the place and more structured. Race's small rant about selfishness may or may not be my feelings on Sanders Sides 'Selfishness vs. Selflessness Redux'. We meet Demeter in this chapter! I love her. I think she might be my second favorite god. My favorite is the Trials of Apollo: Apollo. His character development is like my drug. Lastly, if it's still Feb 3rd it's my birthday! So this is my birthday gift to you. I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it. ♡(✿◠‿◠)
> 
> Thanks again to my beta BloodWolf29


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